Labour wants construction to pay workers more

Labour leader Ed Miliband has outlined plans to strengthen the minimum wage with the construction identified as one sector that could be asked to pay its workers more.

Speaking at the Labour Party conference over the weekend, Miliband said he had asked Alan Buckle, deputy chairman at KPMG, to investigate how the role and powers of the Low Pay Commission could be extended to strengthen the minimum wage.

Buckle will examine whether certain sectors of the economy, such as construction, financial and IT could afford to pay workers more - a move that Miliband said could mean a pay rise for one million workers.

Miliband said Buckle would consult widely with employers and employee groups on ways to restore the value of the minimum wage so that it catches up with where it was in 2010.

The move came as part of Labour’s push to make what it says is the cost of living crisis the centre piece of its autumn conference.